Mortgage, HELOC payments soar – CMHC

By Geraldine Grones | this page was last updated on the 28 Feb 2019Font size :

The average payment on mortgages and home-equity lines of credit (HELOCs) soared across the country’s largest housing markets, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) Q3 2018 numbers.

Toronto households with a mortgage were paying an average of $1,710, up by 5.95% from a year before. Vancouver, the country’s most expensive market, climbed to $1,734, up by 6.34%. Montreal, which is now outperforming the two in price growth but lagged for many years prior, increased to $1,081, up by 3.44%.

Higher payments may be putting a drag on homeownership, as the ratio of households with a mortgage began falling. Toronto’s share dropped to 25%, down by 3.84% from a year before. Vancouver declined to 27%, down by 3.57%, while Montreal made no movement from 29%.

The average HELOC payment soared even higher than mortgages. Toronto rose to $583, up by 19.47% from a year before, while Vancouver reached $652, up by 15.19%. Montreal topped out both cities with $680, up by 20.57%. Payments went up by almost a fifth in just one year, which is a huge increase.

While Toronto and Vancouver property prices are down, rising rates pushed payments higher. But payments are still larger and experiencing much higher growth in Montreal, according to a Better Dwelling report.

Related stories:

Are you looking to invest in property? If you like, we can get one of our mortgage experts to tell you exactly how much you can afford to borrow, which is the best mortgage for you or how much they could save you right now if you have an existing mortgage. Click here to get help choosing the best mortgage rate